Chilly.   Cloudy.  Chance of rain.  This is Bloom Day 2010. Although we are behind last year's bloom day beauties, the front garden is still on track with bulbs popping up everywhere, and the beautiful Viola x wittrockiana 'Imperial Antique Shades' F-1 hybrids lend a softness to the border.  I still need to trim the dead foliage from the nandinas.  It was a hard winter for all of us. Instead of complaining about my chilly (43F) late-winter, early-spring, I'm going to reflect on it just a moment.  Last year, everything was sunny and beautiful and warm.  Like Athena, who emerged fully grown from Zeus's head, the plants fairly sprang from the ground already in bloom.  Do you remember what happened later?  On April 8, 2009, we had a freeze which killed the Japanese maple in the front bed (fortunately the landscaper who installed it covered its replacement), and several of my...

After my post regarding tools, I talked to the nice folks at Ethel Gloves, and they would like to give one lucky reader a pair of their beautifully crafted gloves (a value of $20).  The winner even gets to choose the color.  Personally, I like Jubilee shown above, but that's because I'm a blue girl. I enjoy the Ethels I received at the Chicago Garden Bloggers Spring Fling very much.  They aren't for pruning roses (for that I would need the rose gloves), but with their great fit and elastic around the wrist, I use them for everything else.  In other words, I get them very dirty and throw them in the washer.  Out they come, sparkling clean and ready for work again. So, put on your thinking caps.  Tell me your best glove story.  Did they save you from needing a manicure, or did they keep your fingers from...

I have, and if you follow me on GoodReads.com, you might have already read my mini-reviews of these two books, but, in case you missed them . . . . Anyone who knows me knows I'm a big fan of Sharon Lovejoy's work.  For the past twenty years, I've read everything she's written, smiled at her drawings, and implemented much of what she teaches.  I've built sunflower houses, played with my children during Hollyhock Days, and we've shared many other adventures in the garden. I'm also proud to be working with her and seven other wonderful writers on the Lowe's Garden Grow Along blog this spring. When she asked me to review her new book, Toad Cottages and Shooting Stars: Grandma's Bag of Tricks, I nearly clapped my hands in delight.  Its arrival in the mail made me stop what I was doing to plop down in a chair and...

Dang it!  My hand weeder is again missing. After all the work I put it through yesterday, it is probably hiding under a pile of rose canes.  Debris piles are all over the garden right now so it wouldn't surprise me.  If I don't find it soon, I'll be forced to buy another.  Then, one day, I'll find this one as I cleaning and clearing away. It's important to have good tools.  In fact, it is one of Carol's five keys to garden happiness, and I agree. Whether your passion is cooking, baking, crafting or gardening (all things I enjoy), good tools make your job easier and more enjoyable.  I've found I only need a few garden tools to make me happy. A good pair of loppers is one of the essentials.  I like the 28- inch Fiskars Power-Lever Loppers because they have gears which make them more powerful and...